The Inception of Banaras Hindu University: Who Was the Founder in the Light of Historical Documents?
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The holy city of Varanasi is basking in its newfound glory. After all, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has opted to retain it as his parliamentary constituency and make it the focus of his effort to cleanse the Ganga. Banaras Hindu University, the ancient city’s second most important landmark after Kashi Vishwanath temple, has also drawn immense public attention of late. It’s “Founder”, Mahamana Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, has now been decorated with Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian honour. The perception, so far, has been that BHU came into being due to the labours of Malaviya, one single person, somewhat with the touch of a magic wand, and at a particular moment on 4th February 1916. The works on BHU in the past have never cited any documents in support of Malaviya’s claim to Foundership. Lots of legends were created to make him a true hero. Nothing can be farther from the truth. Was it possible for a low middle class young lawyer and supporter of Congress to get the sanction of the colonial powers and the required phenomenal sum of money for creation of the first private university in India in the era when there were no industries or private sector to support the cause? The documents unearthed after about 100 years show that Malaviya, at best, can be described as one among several stalwarts who made yeoman effort to ensure that the first true Indian university came into being. The real story of BHU’s establishment, somehow, got lost in the breakneck speed with which the university’s history was selectively written and propagated. Who, then, were the real founders of BHU? What is the complete story of BHU’s establishment and why was it never told? Did the unfolding politics of pre- and post-Independence India have any relation with the credit being usurped by a certain individual? These are extremely critical questions and this well-researched book attempts to provide the answers by bringing to light more than 150 documents consisting of correspondence with the government regarding permission for establishment of the university, letters and reports concerning canvassing for donations and movement across the Indian sub-continent, news paper reports published at different times, personal communications of the ruling chiefs, congratulatory telegrams of Viceroy and Member Education to the Founder, etc. The suppressed papers are out to reveal the full story and truth of the most interesting happening of the first two decades of the last century as India took a big step in the field of higher education with the establishment of first private university at the most revered of the places known for education throughout the Indian cultural history.
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About the Book
Benaras Hindu University has drawn immense public attention of late. The widely prevailed notion that its founder was only one charismatic person, Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya has now been legitimized by decorating him (posthumously) with Bharat Ratna, the country’s highest civilian honour. Nothing can be farther from the truth. The documents unearthed almost a century after the creation of B.H.U. vividly reveal his status and role in the “Committee for the Establishment of Benaras Hindu University”. Malviya can be considered, at best, simply as one along with Mrs. Annie Besant, Sir Sundar Lal under the leadership of the then Maharaja of Darbhanga, Sir Rameshwara Singh, who led the movement for the establishment of the first denominational university in India. These historical documents present evidence of how and by whom the colonial power was successfully persuaded to inaugurate a new chapter of India’s cultural history by yielding to the mission of establishing the first private university in the country.
About the Author
It is not necessary to be a historian to write history. Tejakar Jha, an MA in Sociology from Patna University, has been living by this dictum for quite some time now. Essentially a marketing research professional, Tejakar started ‘Vigyapan’, his own design studio, in 2001 after a stint with a leading advertising agency of Bihar. But the state’s rich history and many an untold stories kept pushing him towards substantial research. He has been working on the history of Bihar during the colonial period for the last 12 years. Cited by scholars in India and abroad, his works include: ‘Bihar in the Eyes of British Traveller and Painters, 1780-1850’ (published by Maharajadhiraja Kameshwar Singh Kalyani Foundation, Darbhanga, 2008), and ‘Walking Down the Lane, A Pictorial Tribute to Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the First President of India’ (published by Bihar State Archives, Patna, 2011). Tejakar has been consulted in developing the recent publications of the state’s Art and Culture Department, including ‘A Monumental History of Patna’ and ‘Bihar ke Dharohar’.